Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) has released footage of men removing a shipment of cocaine from a container, and of their arrest shortly afterwards. Two of the four men involved were sentenced to 18 years in prison on Wednesday. Two others were previously sentenced to 13.5 and almost 13 years in prison.
139 kilos
The four were filmed in April 2022 when they were removing 139 kilo blocks of cocaine from a sea container at an industrial estate. The container of bananas had arrived from Ecuador and was then searched at London Gateway harbour. Border Patrol officers found the packages of drugs, but resealed the container.
The container was then monitored. One of the suspects then contacted the shipping company to have the container released. According to the NCA, he acted on behalf of an Albanian criminal group.
Coventry
A few days later, one of the men contacted the shipping company to release the container. A transport company drove the container to a storage facility in Herald Way, Coventry, while NCA officers monitored the transport.
On April 15, 2022, the four went to pick up the cocaine. They reached the top with a forklift and made an opening. While they were at it, the police intervened. An escape attempt failed.
Four members of an organized crime group have been jailed after attempting to smuggle 139 kilos of cocaine into the UK hidden in a consignment of bananas.
Full story ➡️ https://t.co/rMYaoqvcFm pic.twitter.com/uajXYMBdSH
— National Crime Agency (NCA) (@NCA_UK) November 1, 2023
